Studying extreme precipitation in Southeastern U.S.

An atmospheric river observatory recently installed in Sydney, Florida. The system consists of a Doppler wind profiling radar, a 10-m meteorological tower, and a GPS receiver to calculate integrated water vapor. (CREDIT: Clark King, NOAA)

June 4, 2014

NOAA Hydrometeorology Testbed (HMT) personnel from ESRL's
Physical Sciences Division (PSD) are leading a study to
improve observations and fundamental understanding of heavy precipitation
in the southeastern U.S. With support from the 2013 Disaster Relief
Appropriations Act (a.k.a. Sandy Supplemental), this project aims to
address how extreme precipitation events in the Southeast can be...

Better Understood – by analyzing the historical record and applying modern forecasting techniques such as reforecasting;

Better Integrated – so that relevant information on extreme precipitation events can be shared with stakeholders, both inside and outside of NOAA.

This month, AROs are being installed at sites in
Sydney, Florida, coastal Mississippi, and Charleston, South Carolina.
Providing better observations of landfalling tropical weather systems will
help further understanding of these important phenomena. Data from the AROs
will be transmitted back to a data hub in Boulder, Colorado, where image
products are generated immediately and
made available
to weather forecasters and the general public.